ALMOST one in seven households who identified as homeless in Brighton and Hove last summer were in work, figures reveal.

Data from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government shows 567 households were entitled to help from Brighton and Hove City Council between July and September last year, including 424 assessed as homeless and 143 at risk of homelessness.

Of these, 32 had at least one person working full-time and 36 had someone working part-time, which is 14 per cent of all homeless households in the area whose employment status was known.

SEE ALSO: Average Brighton home costs 16 times the average salary, figures show

There were also seven households where the main applicant was a student or in training and 34 where they were seeking work.

The Argus:

Across England, almost a quarter of households assessed as homeless had full-time or part-time jobs between July and September.

It comes after a GoCompare study last year which showed the average property in Brighton costs £461,021 - 16 times the average wage.

Responding to the figures, Andy Winter, chief executive of Brighton Housing Trust (BHT), called for long term investment in social housing.

He said: “Just because someone is in employment it doesn't mean they can’t lose their homes.

“Brighton and Hove is a high cost, low-wage area.

“The government needs to have a fundamental rethink in its housing strategy. We need a massive investment in social housing with rents people can afford to pay.

READ MORE: Three homeless people die in Eastbourne

"Policies like help to buy and the right to buy don’t produce more homes - they result in huge public subsidies paid to some people, but only if they have incomes high enough to benefit from the schemes.

The Argus: Andy Winter, chief executive of Brighton Housing TrustAndy Winter, chief executive of Brighton Housing Trust

“A huge programme of council house building would alleviate the housing shortage, create jobs and ultimately help with the economic and social recovery from Covid-19."

Mr Winter said the true impact of the pandemic is not yet visible because of the government's moratorium on evictions, and many more people could face homelessness in the months ahead.

He said: "I fear we will see a tsunami of evictions over the next 12 to 24 months once the eviction ban is lifted.

“Anyone facing eviction should get advice as soon as possible from one of BHT’s centres in Brighton, Eastbourne and Hastings - details can be found on our website at www.bht.org.uk."

SEE ALSO: Brighton and Hove City Council's homeless challenge

Homelessness charity Crisis said it is "unacceptable" people are in paid work but without a home during the pandemic, and is calling for emergency grants and loans to renters who have been forced into arrears by the crisis.

The Argus:

Chief executive Jon Sparkes said: “We must not lose sight of the fact that homelessness amongst workers has existed long before Covid-19 and to end it once and for all, we need long-term investment in affordable housing.”

A spokeswoman for the government said it had provided "unprecedented support" for renters during Covid-19 through the evictions ban and welfare support.

She added that over £700 million was being provided to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping this year, and over £12 billion in affordable housing over five years.